


find solace (and then take me there)

by mymostimaginaryfriend



Series: cartel carols [1]
Category: Queen of the South (TV)
Genre: F/M, Future Fic, Jeresa, and thru christmas magic tony hasn’t aged a day, pure holiday fluff, retirement looks good on them, wherein james is secretly bougie
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-12-16
Updated: 2018-12-16
Packaged: 2019-09-17 05:12:02
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,182
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16968303
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/mymostimaginaryfriend/pseuds/mymostimaginaryfriend
Summary: Teresa and James' missions look a little different nowadays.(Juuuuust in case anyone wanted some Jeresa holiday fluff)





	find solace (and then take me there)

**Author's Note:**

> Title from Snow Day by Lisa Loeb

James crouches in the snow behind a low hedge and quickly pulls Teresa down beside him.

“Okay, wait,” he pauses as they huddle together, shoulder to shoulder, out of the wind. His Texas ass can barely think in this cold weather, let alone formulate a plan of attack but he takes a quick mental inventory of their enemy, sorting through his options before locking on a target. “Your two o’clock. That kid can’t throw for shit.”

Teresa stares at him as he tries to hand her a snowball. “James, he’s twelve. He’s Tony’s _friend_.”

He presses the snowball more firmly into her gloved palm. “He’s the weak link and we’re getting our asses kicked. Take him out.”

Teresa shoots him an exasperated look, her nose cutely pink from the cold. When Christmas in Colorado first came up, James wasn’t exactly enthusiastic. Why freeze your ass off when you could be having mimosas every morning on a beach in Fiji? But when Teresa found out Tony could spend the holiday with them, she wanted to treat the kid to something special. The lodge they’re staying at in Aspen goes all out for the holidays including all kinds of Christmas crap going on for kids. Sure enough, Tony is loving it. Even James can admit he is feeling the Christmas spirit--when he isn’t busy battling hypothermia.

But really, the look on Teresa’s face whenever Tony marvels at the snow, makes the trip worth it all by itself. Besides, Teresa and James have a fireplace in their suite and a hot tub on their balcony. As long as James can thaw out periodically, ideally with Teresa half naked within arm’s reach, he can put up with the cold.

Tony has quickly made fast friends with the other kids his age at the resort---so much so that his tightly knit crew has Teresa and James pinned down in record time today. James can tell Teresa is proud of Tony’s friend-making abilities, and sure, that’s great and all, but James has a rep to protect. And right now they’re getting their asses handed to them by a bunch of preadolescents.

“Your two o’clock,” he reminds her and gets back to work restocking their snowball arsenal.

Teresa peeks above the hedge and three snowballs fly by her head in quick succession. She hastily ducks back down.

James can’t quite keep the “I told you so” off his face but at least he doesn’t say it out loud. He shuffles down a few feet to adjust his angle and then lets his own snowball fly-- right into the face of the oldest kid, a hellraiser with a decent throwing arm.

He hears the roar in response as Tony’s buddies react to the direct hit and has to bite down his smile.

Teresa shakes her head at him, eyes dancing. He raises his eyebrows cockily in return, gesturing at himself up and down. “Decorated sniper, thank you very much.”

She makes a skeptical noise that transforms into laughter when payback is swiftly delivered by a freaking avalanche of snowballs raining down on his shoulders. He winces at the wet cold seeping down his collar and nudges Teresa back down a few feet the other way.

_Rookie mistake, always keep moving._

“I think we need to adjust strategies,” Teresa observes, helping him brush the snow off his face and neck. He can’t help but smile at her, unbearably fond, as she fusses over him, readjusting his beanie over his ears.

“What do you have in mind?” he asks, forcing himself to refocus on the problem at hand before he makes a new one by finding a less kid-friendly way to entertain Teresa in the snow.

She looks over her shoulder, then around the end of the hedge. They are positioned on the flat part at the top of the largest hill behind the lodge. “Cover me.”

James looks up just as Teresa takes off in a crouched run and scrambles to comply, haphazardly launching all the snowballs he’s stockpiled, throwing with both hands. He’s going for more shock and awe than finesse and luckily it works. By the time he’s on empty, Teresa is hidden behind a low wall at the edge of the slope and their enemy is none the wiser.

_Outflanking them, nice_. He’s impressed. Even after years of retirement, her instincts are as sharp as ever.

He laughs out a groan when he sees her peek around the wall and signal to the twelve-year-old target from earlier. _Teresa and her strays._ Of course, Teresa would try to recruit the enemy to her side. He personally knew she was particularly good at that.

The kid looks around and does a “who me?” before sneaking over to join Teresa behind her wall. James eyes the rest of Tony’s crew but they’re too busy pelting his hedge with snow to notice a soldier has gone AWOL.

He tosses a few snowballs at the remaining kids, giving her some cover, then watches as she reaches in her coat pocket and hands the kid what looks like a chocolate Santa. The kid’s face lights up and James knows she’s got him when he takes out his phone and within a minute there are three more defectors sneaking over behind enemy lines. James has to laugh. No one can resist Teresa for long. Or apparently a well-timed sugar-fix.

Unfortunately, the new additions to her army aren’t quite as stealthy as the first and Tony and his friends notice them just as they reach Teresa’s hiding spot. They let out a battle cry and converge toward her en masse preceded by a hail of snowballs.

James springs into action, sprinting toward her and quickly assessing the new combat zone. Teresa is shielding her head with her arms and shrieking with laughter as she fends off the onslaught. She’s able to get a few quick shots off but she’s close to being overrun.

_No loyalty, man_ \--the twelve-year-old has already abandoned Teresa to take part in the attack but judging by her smile, he’s already forgiven. Thanks to his longer legs, James is a few steps ahead of most of the kids when he vaults the wall, grabs Teresa around the waist and hauls her onto Tony’s abandoned sled nearby. Using their momentum to propel them forward, they fly down the hill.

The sled is a bit too small for them but big enough to send them thrillingly fast down the slope. Teresa lets out a scream of delight and clutches at his arms around her waist. He tries to keep a good hold of her as they careen quickly to the bottom but they lose control near the end, their landing rough enough to send them tumbling together off of the sled with muffled groans. They’re not as young as they used to be, that’s for damn sure. They land in a jumble of limbs, James sprawled on top of Teresa.

Before James can disentangle himself, a blur of movement catches his attention. “Oh, shit, hold on.”

He barely rolls them out of the path of the oncoming sleds in time. The kids whoop and laugh, jumping off their rides and piling in on them, snow flying everywhere. James brackets his arms on either side of Teresa’s head and tries the best he can to shield her with his body but the kids are brutally efficient and they are sitting ducks out here. They’re half buried in snow in seconds.

“Okay, okay damn,” he protests after barely blocking a handful of snow to his face and Teresa breathlessly agrees from where she hides beneath him. “We surrender.”

Tony gives a signal and immediately there is a ceasefire. He stands up and is quickly flanked by his lieutenants. Teresa can’t quite stifle her giggle at the way Tony’s handling his crew so James subtly tugs her earlobe and purses his lips to keep from laughing as he squirms away from her retaliatory pinch to his side. He’s got enough layers on to be safe for now but knows she’ll pay him back later. He’s looking forward to it.

Tony crosses his arms and regards them imperiously. Down the line of his friends, there’s a variety of triumphant yet skeptical expressions. It’s safe to say, James hasn’t been quite graceful in defeat the last few days. None of the kids trust that he doesn’t have something left up his sleeve but this time his white flag is legit. His only priority at the moment is figuring out the fastest route back to their hot tub.

_For real --fuck snow._

“So you officially give up your reign as King of the Mountain?” Tony demands, unconvinced.

“Um, _Queen_ of the Mountain!” Teresa protests, lifting her head to mock glare at the usurpers before hiding her smile in James’ coat sleeve.

“Sorry, Teresa,” Tony whispers before insisting louder, “Do you surrender as Queen of the Mountain? Say the words!”

“Say it! Say it!” Tony’s crew backs him up with a chant.

James shares a quick amused glance with Teresa before affecting matching solemn expressions, and reciting together as one, “We hereby relinquish the mountain to King Tony, the…”

They trail off and look at Tony expectantly. He stops to contemplate his new title, giving the moment all the gravity it deserves. A mischievous grin breaks out over his face as he proudly proclaims, “The Badass!”

James coughs over his chuckle and Teresa doesn’t even try to hide her snort. “We hereby relinquish the mountain to King Tony, the Badass. Long may he reign.”

The kids cheer raucously and James and Teresa try to keep straight faces at all the pre-teen smack talk that accompanies Tony’s coronation but it’s no use. By the time the kids grab their sleds and retreat back up the hill, they’re both cracking up.

“Get outta here,” James scoffs when one of the stragglers asks for a chocolate Santa and quickly has to duck one last snowball in retaliation for his refusal.

He readjusts his weight and props himself up on his elbows to check on Teresa. She rests her hands on his arms, a bit breathless as she gets her bearings. She might have had the wind knocked out of her but she’s glowing with happiness. As soon as their eyes meet James is laughing again, shoulders shaking as he lowers his head, tucking his face under her jaw.

“Fiji, Teresa. _Fiji._ ”

She runs a gloved hand down the back of his head and joins in his laughter. They catch their breath for a moment, resting against each other as their heart rates slow. He drops a kiss on her pulse point and raises his head, brushing her hair back from her eyes. They both lost their hats somewhere on the wild ride down the hill.

“Are you ok?”

She smiles and nods, eyes warm as she looks up at him.

“Thank you,” she murmurs and he sees her blink back a few tears—-from laughter, the wind or something deeper he doesn’t know. She sniffs a little but her gaze doesn’t waver.

“For what?” he asks voice soft with tenderness, gently tracing the line of her jaw with his finger.

Her lips twist with emotion as she slides her hands up the shoulders of his coat until her gloves reach his head, her fingers threading into his hair as her thumbs lightly stroke his cheekbones.

“For rescuing me.”

“Teresa,” he breathes reverently. The way she’s said it, he knows she means for more than just the sled ride down the hill. They’ve been together for so long now yet she can still demolish him with a single look or a simple heartfelt statement. He shakes his head, “You have to know---you rescued _me_.”

She looks up at him from beneath wet lashes, eyes bright with love. Her hands move to the nape of his neck, pulling him closer until their lips softly meet. Once. Twice. Then deeper. James melts into the kiss and for a moment they get lost in the pleasure of warming each other up.

“We’re still here,” she sighs against his mouth, sliding her arms around his shoulders and holding him tighter. They’ve been through so much and have come so far. It still staggers him to think of it sometimes--the thought of what they have now compared to what they’ve left in the past. The hope of their future laid out before them.

“Together,” he agrees, kissing her eyelids before nuzzling his face back into her neck.

Distantly he hears the sounds of Tony and his friends laughing up the hill. He feels the movement of Teresa breathing steadily in his arms, the feel of her hand running through his hair and caressing his face. He’s not sure he’ll ever deserve this--her love or this life-- but he knows he’ll never stop trying to be worthy of it.

“Together,” Teresa whispers, kissing his temple. It still makes his heart leap; it still rips him apart and mends him back together.

It still feels like peace.

**Author's Note:**

> Happy holidays QOTS fam! ILU.
> 
> tumblr: mymostimaginaryfriend


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